August 2011 archives

Woody Allen, Woody Allen (1966) It’s very easy for people who haven’t followed the work of Woody Allen to come down on him for the personal stories that have made the press. You can frown on him all you like for his choice/s in women – and for the way he handles his affairs (pun […]

Pink Floyd, Animals (1977) Often my favourite Pink Floyd album is the one I’m listening to – it’s hard to pick a favourite. Just as often, these days, I’m fairly much over the band; done to death. And though there are albums by Floyd that seem to stand to the side (Atom Heart Mother) I […]

The Lemonheads, It’s A Shame About Ray (1992) I feel like I’ve been listening to The Lemonheads for a lot longer than I have. I mean, I remember this album from when it was released, pretty much 20 years ago, but it feels like it’s been around longer. No real surprise given that Evan Dando […]

Bob Marley, Babylon By Bus (1978) This was the first Bob Marley album I ever owned; the first I picked up on LP (for $1). The cover is ripped, so the sleeves fall out of the bus. But the records are in decent condition – and that’s (ultimately) what matters. I really loved Bob Marley’s […]

Led Zeppelin, Presence (1976) Isn’t it funny how your tastes change within the work of one band even as you get older? For some (whatever) reason, even at my peak of Led Zeppelin fandom in my teen years (and early 20s) I thought that Presence was a dud. I didn’t care for it. Sure, I […]

Bill Conti, Rocky (1976) At some point – a few years back – I started to think of Gonna Fly Now as one of the greatest pieces of music ever. The irony that I might have been attempting was so deep that I couldn’t work out my true feelings about this piece of music. All […]

John Williams, The John Williams Collection (1978) I pulled out The John Williams Collection the other night. I told my wife, Katy, all about how I used to listen to John Williams on CD at university. It was my go-to music for when I wrote essays (which wasn’t all that often). I had heard John […]

Paul Simon, There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (1973) I still maintain Paul Simon hasn’t made a bad album – really. And if he has then it’s not this one. I don’t really care for the big single from this album; it’s okay, it’s got a groove but it never really did it for me. But […]

John Lennon, The John Lennon Collection (1982) The first posthumous John Lennon collection, this is the compilation that I turn to rather than his albums. John – out of The Beatles – doesn’t really do it for me. People mock Macca but he delivers. John didn’t. Okay, so Plastic Ono Band is a masterpiece. And […]

Commodores, Live! (1977) You all know that I love Lionel and that I even got to interview him. But for some reason – as far as a lot of people are concerned – it’s fair to love the Commodores but not the solo career of Lionel Richie. And this is just a theory I’ve made […]

Bruce Springsteen, Tunnel Of Love (1987) I like this record a lot. I like the title song and Brilliant Disguise and basically every track on the album. I like that there’s no other record in Bruce Springsteen’s career that is (quite) like this. In fact there’s no other record by The Boss that’s remotely like […]

Elvis Presley, Words & Music: 10th Anniversary Commemorative Album (1987) This was the first album – compilation – by Elvis Presley that I ever heard. You see my mum is a huge Elvis fan. Still is. Always was. So much so that her and my dad still have a petty wee argument where dad will […]